Spindle drive



Oct. 30, 1962 G c, ANDERS'ON ETAL 3,060,613

SPINDLE DRIVE Filed Oct. 5, 1959 United States Patent 3,060,673 SPlNDLE DRIVE Gordon C. Anderson and Lester W. Pray, Clemson, S.C.,

assignors to Saco-Lowell Shops, Boston, Mass, a corporation of Maine Filed Oct. 5, 1959, Ser. No. 844,486 8 Claims. (Cl. 57-1tl5) This invention relates to improvements in textile machines and more particularly to tape driven spindles in spinning or twisting frames.

It is a principal object of this invention to provide an improved spindle drive.

One particular feature of the invention is in the nature of the endless driving tape employed which permits stopping of a spindle without damage to the tape, and permits stopping one spindle without causing appreciable drag on the tape and, consequently, the remaining spindle or spindles driven by the same tape are maintained at constant speed and constant spinning conditions are thereby maintained.

Another feature is the prevention of contact of lint upon this tape, whereby the surface qualities of each side of the tape is maintained.

A further feature of the invention is the combination of tension pulleys with a main driving shaft and pulley between spindles on parallel spindle rails in a unique relationship affording compactness of moving elements and elimination of parts heretofore known, providing improved tension conditions, all easily shielded, and preventing the accumulation of lint and danger to personnel.

Yet another feature of the invention is the utilization of the spindle rail as the mount for tensioning apparatus for the tape drive, permitting accurate factory alignment of the various elements.

Other objects and features of the invention are, in part, obvious and will, in part, appear hereinafter.

The invention in its preferred form comprises spacedapart spindles mounted on parallel spindle rails, the spindles being provided with whirls below the rails for bottom driving. Centrally mounted between the rails is a driving shaft and a drive pulley for each group of spindles. Supported from brackets mounted on the rails are pivoted bell cranks, each carrying two tension pulleys. As the spindle-driving element, an endless tape is utilized, such tape having one facing of a high friction material and the other facing of low friction, high wear-resistant material, the high friction side of the tape being held in contact with a driving surface of the drive pulley and the low friction side being held in driving contact with the whirls of the spindles. According to the invention, the whirls and the tension pulleys are arranged in such a fashion that both runs of the tape across the machine lie on one side of the drive shaft in a compact assembly. Tape replacement is thus considerably facilitated.

The invention will be better understood with reference to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a sectional end view of a spinning frame;

7 FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view of the tape in contact with a single whirl;

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view of the tape in contact with the drive pulley; and

FIG. 4 is a view similar to that of FIG. 2 on a slightly smaller scale of another preferred embodiment of the apparatus wherein one tape drives four spindles, two on each rail.

It should be understood that preferred embodiments of the invention generally include two parallel spindle rails spaced apart with one or two adjacent spindles on each rail driven by the same tape. The preferred embodiment of FIGS. 1-3 shows for ease of illustration a single spindle on one rail matched with an opposing spindle on the other driven by an endless tape. Because of the identical nature of the frame on each side of the drive shaft, reference will be made to one side only except where there is a cooperation between elements on both sides.

Rferring now to FIGS. 1-3, spindle rail 10 is provided with a suitable resilient mounting 11 upon which a spindle 12 is mounted. Bottom whirl 14 lies below the spindle rail. Brake 16 is provided to stop the rotating spindle when desired. Centrally, with its axis parallel to the spindle rail and in substantially the same horizontal plane, is a drive pulley 18 mounted on drive shaft 20. A bell crank support bracket 22 is mounted on the inward portion of the spindle rail. On this bracket is pivotally mounted bell crank 24 about pivot point 23, having an upper arm rotatably supporting an upper tension pulley 26 provided to maintain substantial constant arcuate dn'ving contact on the drive cylinder, and a lower arm supporting a lower tension pulley 28 provided to maintain the driving tape in alignment with the whirl. Upon the bell crank is provided a flexible fastening means 30. To this fastening means is attached a tension spring 32. extending between fastening means 30 of the aforesaid bell crank to the fastening means 30' of the bell crank 24' of the assembly on other side of the drive pulley. The fastening means 30, 30 are each located on the respective bell crank at a position on the same side of the bell crank pivot point as the bell crank arms so that tension between the two bell cranks causes them to tend to rotate toward the drive cylinder and away from the adjacent whirls. An endless tape 34 is trained about the underside of the drive pulley 18, over the upper pulley 26, under the lower pulley 28 around whirl 1'4 and across the machine to the opposed assembly through which it is threaded in a similar manner. With this construction, through the pull of the spring, both pulleys on each bell crank cooperate to properly tension the tape.

Referring specifically to FIGS. 2 and 3, the drive tape 34 has one surface 36 of high friction material, preferably rubber-like compound, for contact with the drive pulley to avoid slippage for efficient drive. The opposite face 38 is of low friction material, preferably fabric of high strength synthetic material, i.e. Dacron, nylon, Orlon, etc., adapted to run on the whirl surfaces, driving the spindles. It will be noted that the tension apparatus as described is adapted to introduce one face of the tape to the drive pulley and the opposite face to the whirl. In operation, when it is desired to stop a spindle, the brake 16 is actuated and the whirl 14 stops. The tape, however, does not stop and it is hardly at all affected by the stopped whirl because of the low friction contact between surface 38 and the whirl surface. By this apparatus the unstopped spindles driven by the same tape is maintained at very constant speed.

In FIG. 4 is a section in somewhat smaller scale of a portion of a four spindle single tape drive. It will be understood that this apparatus can be identical in every way with the apparatus of FIGS. 1-3 with the exception that the tape 34' extends around two whirls 14a and 14b on each spindle rail as illustrated.

One particular advantage of the apparatus herein described lies in the unique tension assembly. This involves the particular combination of both the upper and lower pulleys on a bell crank. With this combination and the spring as described, the forces on the bell crank caused by its own weight, the downward tape force upon the upper pulley, the upward and rightward tape force upon the lower pulley and the leftward force of the tension spring brings the bell crank system into balance. Accordingly, it is possible to fasten the bell crank support bracket 22 directly upon the spindle rail. In the factory it is possible to locate spindle holes in the spindle rail and the bracket bolt holes so that upon assembly the lower pulley 28 supported through the bell crank on the bracket is in the desired alignment with an assembled spindle. Also with the tension assembly as described, with both an upper and a lower pulley mounted on the same lever (the bell crank) a great amount of tape takeup is accomplished for small increments of angular movement of the lever, permitting compact construction and improved tensioning. Individual weights or springs previously used to tension or balance the apparatus are eliminated, the proper tension brought by all four tension pulleys being accomplished through a single spring. The single spring 32 is designed with a definite spring rate which, in combination with the illustrated fastening means and pivot points of the bell cranks, produces a substantially constant tension on the driving tape, for every incremental increase in the spring moment arm attributable to pivotal displacement of the bell crank, spring tension decreases virtually equally, and varied loading on the tape is thus avoided.

A further advantage obtained with the tension apparatus of FIG. 1 is that a constant driving force is maintained upon the tape. This is, in part, attributable to the constant tension maintained as discussed above. Additionally, the arcuate length of tape contact with the drive pulley is maintained substantially constant during operation even when the tension pulleys pivot substantially, and accordingly the friction drive forces are constant. This is achieved by the particular pivotal arrangement of pulley 26 in relation to drive pulley 18, the radius between the pivot point 23 and the center of rotation of pulley 26 being substantially perpendicular to the tangent to the desired point of contact on the drive pulley 18 wherein upon pivotal movement of pulley 26 about pivot point 23 the tape is maintained in the same tangential alignment with the drive pulley.

Another particular advantage of the invention is the compactness of the entire driving and tension apparatus. It will be noted that virtually none of the apparatus extends above the spindle rail or below the spindles. In addition to the attendant saving in the required length of the endless tape it is possible to utilize a shield 40 extending from one spindle rail to the other to shield the driving apparatus. This naturally eliminates safety hazards. Also lint is prevented from falling upon the driving apparatus. Furthermore, the neat and improved form of the frame permits easy cleaning. In a preferred em bodirnent, bottom air-tight access doors 41 are also provided, shown as horizontal doors, thus completing an air-tight enclosure about the drive assembly. An air means, such as an impeller 21 in the wall of shield 40 and mounted upon the drive shaft 20 provides air into this enclosure maintained at a pressure slightly above ambient atmospheric pressures. All minor air leakage is accordingly outward from the enclosure, and the drive assembly is kept free from lint and other extraneous material, whereby the surfaces of the driving tape remain clean with constant surface friction characteristics.

All of these advantages are obtained in a spindle frame in which the tape can be trained about the various elements without having to piece the tape at the machine as both runs of the tape are on the same side of the drive shaft.

As many further advantages can be had and modifications can be made Within the teachings of this disclosure, it is intended that all material be taken as merely descriptive and non-limiting as to the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A spinning frame comprising two spaced-apart spindle rails, at least one spindle mounted upon one rail opposite at least one spindle mounted upon the other rail, each spindle provided with a driving whirl, a driving pulley mounted between the opposite spindles, a driving tape, and means for tensioning the driving tape, said driving tape comprising one driving surface of high friction material in contact with the drive pulley and the other driving surface of low friction material in contact with the driving whirls.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the driving whirls of each of the spindles is located upon its spindle below the spindle rail, and the tensioning means comprises two pivotally mounted bell cranks, one on each side of the drive cylinder, each carrying two tension pulleys, and tension spring means extending between each of said bell cranks fastened to create a turning moment about the pivot point of each of said bell cranks causing said tension pulleys each to tend to tighten said tape.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said mechanism is contained within a substantially air-tight enclosure and fitted with means for introducing air into said enclosure to maintain a pressure above the ambient atmospheric pressure outside of said enclosure, thereby causing any air leakage to be from within said enclosure outwardly to the surrounding atmosphere thus preventing the migration of foreign matter into said enclosure.

4. A textile machine comprising two parallel spindle rails, at least one spindle mounted on each of the rails, a drive pulley located between said spindles mounted upon a drive shaft having an axis parallel with said spindle rails, a bracket mounted upon each of the spindle rails, a bell crank pivotally mounted upon each bracket, each bell crank being opposite the other and adjacent to a whirl of the spindle mounted on its spindle rail, each bell crank carrying an upper and a lower tension pulley, means for creating a turning moment upon each of said bell cranks, causing each to rotate away from its adjacent whirl, a driving tape trained about the whirls of each of said spindles, under the lower tension pulley on each bell crank, around the upper tension pulley on each bell crank and around the lower portion of said drive pulley.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the axis of the drive pulley lies in a plane parallel with and very close to a horizontal plane projected through the whirls of the spindles.

6. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein a first side of the tape contacts the drive pulley and the other side contacts the whirls, the first said side having a quality of high surface friction, and the other said side having a quality of low surface friction and high wear resistance.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the first side of the tape is comprised of rubber-like compound and the other side of the tape is comprised of material having low frictional properties as found in Dacron, nylon and Orlon.

8. A spinning frame comprising two spaced-apart spindle rails, at least one spindle mounted upon one rail opposite at least one spindle mounted upon the other rail, and spindle driving mechanism comprising a spindle driving whirl on each spindle, a driving pulley mounted between the opposite spindles, a driving tape, and means for tensioning the driving tape, said mechanism being contained within a substantially airtight enclcosure and having means for introducing air into said enclosure to main- References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Aldrich et a1. Feb. 9, 1932 Hornet Aug. 2, 1932 6 Marsh Aug. 30, 1932 Banfield Nov. 7, 1933 Hodge Aug. 23, 11938 Schurr et a1. Jan. 20, 1959 Martin June 7, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS Denmark Nov. 11, 1946 Italy July 13, 1955 

